The talk at the bar was of a new golden age for the scotch whisky industry after the drinks giant Diageo unveiled plans to pour more than £1bn into building new distilleries and extra stills as it cranks up production to slake the world's growing thirst.

Whisky producers are turning the taps on as drinkers thousands of miles away in the botecos of Rio de Janeiro and Shanghai's upmarket watering holes knock back Scotland's national tipple with gusto.

Last year, whisky exports broke through £4bn, as the drink cemented its position as a status symbol for the growing middle classes of the emerging economies of China, south Asia and South America.

Diageo, owner of Johnnie Walker and Bell's whiskies, said it was already scouting locations in Speyside – known as the whisky triangle because the rugged landscape is home to more than half of Scotland's distilleries – and the Highlands for the first of potentially three new malt distilleries.

Diageo's boss, Paul Walsh, said the five-year investment marked a pivotal moment for its scotch whisky business, which he said had achieved "remarkable, sustained global growth" in recent years.

"Scotch is resonating with consumers from Boston to Beijing," he said. "We expect that success to continue, particularly in high-growth markets."

The decline of Scotland's industrial base has meant that, as with the shipyards and the mines, few Scots have been able to follow their fathers into the traditional trades related to whisky production. But Diageo said the plan would create 110 new jobs aimed at young people including apprentice coopers and coppersmiths. The building projects will create around 250 construction jobs each year and an estimated 500 jobs in the wider economy, the company said.

The promise of new jobs marks a turning point for the industry, said Campbell Evans of the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), because while many producers have been increasing production – including reopening mothballed distilleries – it has so far not particularly boosted employment.

About 10,000 people, many in economically deprived parts of Scotland, are employed directly by the industry.

"The scotch whisky industry has been enjoying a renaissance for several years," said Evans. "I hesitate to use the term 'golden age' but this investment takes us beyond renaissance."

With annual sales of nearly £10bn, Diageo owns a bar-full of drinks brands including Buchanan's, Smirnoff vodka, Baileys and Guinness.

Half the pot of money is earmarked to build two distilleries and a new warehouse to store the maturing spirit.

Although storm clouds hang over the global economy, drinks companies such as Diageo must try to predict the level of demand for blends such as Johnnie Walker, J&B and Bells a decade from now. Legally it takes three years for "new make" to even earn the name whisky, and the rest of the money will be tied up in the producing and maturing of the extra bottles.

Whisky is Scotland's biggest export. John Swinney, the Scottish finance secretary, said Diageo's investment showed the industry had a strong future: "The investment in new distilleries and warehousing capacity is a vivid illustration of the positive and optimistic outlook for demand."

Diageo said it would consider building a third distillery if whisky sales continued to grow at more than 10% a year.

Walsh said three sites had been identified for the first new distillery, including Inchgower and Glendullan in Speyside, and Teaninich slightly further north, while nearly half of its existing 28 malt distilleries were set to expand.

The industry is riding high as a dram becomes the status drink of choice in countries such as Brazil, Russia and China. This year it is predicted more scotch will be consumed in emerging markets than in the developed world, for the first time.

Diageo's rivals are also expanding, with market number two Pernod Ricard – behind brands such as Ballantine's and Chivas Regal – unveiling a £40m investment in its malt distilleries last week. Last year, Brazil was the fastest growing whisky export market, with sales surging 48% to nearly £100m as Cariocas cooled off at the beach with a whisky and coke.

Yet it is a very different story back at home, with consumption in Scotland continuing to fall as the drink finds itself out of fashion with younger consumers who view it as a something their parents drink.

"This year, we forecast scotch consumption in the emerging markets will be greater than in the developed world," says Chris Pitcher, a drinks analyst at brokers Redburn. "This is an important inflection point which highlights the broad-based appeal whisky has achieved."